


strawberries & cigarettes

by aerials



Category: Stranger Things (TV 2016)
Genre: Fluff, M/M, Slow Burn, semi-au
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-10-05
Updated: 2019-05-22
Packaged: 2019-07-25 11:51:42
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 7,888
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16196981
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/aerials/pseuds/aerials
Summary: Sometimes an opportunity presents itself that is just too good to pass up, for Steve Harrington this was not one of those moments.





	1. why don't we pretend?

Sometimes an opportunity presents itself that is just too good to pass up, for Steve Harrington this was not one of those moments. It starts as a relatively normal day, Steve is working a shift in the food court of Starcourt Mall at Scoops Ahoy, keeping an eye on El’ - or Jane as of recent - as she finally integrates into society. Robin, his other coworker, is behind the counter with Jane and they’re replacing empty buckets of ice cream and singing along to the radio. Steve is sitting on the other side of the counter, in the customer area where he’s supposed to be cleaning tables. Serving ice cream to bratty kids is not where he wanted to be a few months after graduation but it’s a job and the way Steve see’s it, not only is it better than working for his father, it’s better than nothing at all. 

So despite the mundane work, he’s feeling pretty content. His day can’t even be ruined by the appearance of Billy Hargrove, who nods in Steve’s direction as he passes, in a silent acknowledgment on his way to one of the other vendors. There had never really been an apology or any kind of resolve for what had transpired in the Byers’ house, where Billy had rearranged Steve’s features with impassioned fists. At this point, though, around nine months later, Steve didn’t expect it, nor did he want it. He was simply glad that since then Billy had, for the most part, left well enough alone. No more teasing in the hallways or at parties, no checking him to the ground in gym, hell he’d even been nice to Lucas, or as nice as he could be. They’d say a few words to one another in passing, whenever they’d drop Max and Dustin off at the arcade or for D&D nights and though it wasn’t friendly, it wasn’t seeped in animosity either. It’s just that, Steve had come face to face with actual real life monsters and he’d come to discover that Billy wasn’t one of them. Billy was an angry kid with a complex and a bad attitude, he wasn’t scary he was just… pathetic. Wading through life trying to find his place with exaggerated movements in hopes it would make up for what was missing in his life and honestly, Steve felt pity for him.

After a few more moments of careful pondering, Steve shakes his head and presses his hand against the table to help get him out of the chair and to his feet. He moves around each table, actually cleaning each top as he goes - not pretending like he had been for a while. Though he’s only supposed to brush off the ones closest to Scoops Ahoy, Steve tends to move further out just to give him something to do. Tuesday afternoons were typically pretty quiet, even in the summer, with most parents working or just too busy for a mid-week drive to the mall. However, it’s weaving through tables that his day turns into something out of a nightmare, as from the escalator an all too happy Nancy bounds toward him.

“So, did you ask her yet?” She asks, smile wide with hands clasped under her chin. She looks hopeful to which Steve offers a look of disdain. Since getting a job at the ice cream parlour, Nancy had taken it upon herself to play matchmaker for Steve and his colleague, despite numerous protests. It’s not that Steve doesn’t think she’s cute, or interesting, she’s plenty of both it’s just that Steve isn’t interested _that_ way and he’s not working there for a romance, he’s pretty much just a glorified babysitter.

“What are you talking about?” Steve replies, playing stupid in hopes that Nancy will just drop it. Though this is Nancy, the same girl who, fresh out of graduation, landed herself a job at the local newspaper as a journalist and knew just how to tell when a bullshitter was bullshitting. Steve was definitely bullshitting. Nancy narrows her eyes then, crossing her arms across her chest.

“She likes you, Steve. Just ask Robin out already,” Nancy says firm but still with a softness around the edges and Steve simply scoffs. He’s known Robin for roughly around a month and in that time, it’s only ever been in a work setting, not nearly enough chances for feelings to develop.

“Yeah, that’s a no,” He states firmly, offering only a light shrug as he turns from Nancy to begin his walk back to the parlour. Nancy falls in step behind and Steve sighs, perhaps if he were to walk fast enough he could disappear into the back of their little store where Nancy can’t reach him. 

“You can’t tell me you have other plans on Friday, there’s no excuse Steve. You can’t spend your summer driving Dustin everywhere, you need a life,” Nancy scolds and a few months ago that would have cut deep, knowing that if Nancy hadn’t run off with Jonathan without an official breakup they would have been spending this summer together. But he’s over that, he’s over Nancy and he’s _happy_ with the way things are now. Comfortable even. 

“For all you know, I already have a date,” Steve utters as he turns to Nancy and waves the cleaning cloth he has clutched in his hand at her. All he gets in response is a roll of the eyes and a hand gesture prompting him to go on. Steve stands in silence and though he looks positively calm on the outside, inside he’s panicked not knowing what to say next.

“Well, do you?” She pries and Steve should have known better than to even entertain the idea because it’s literally Nancy’s job to ask questions and have those she talks to elaborate on certain topics and well, Steve isn’t sure he can.

“That’s none of your busin-“ Steve starts but is cut off abruptly by Nancy raising her hand and Steve retreats, crossing his own arms over his body like it would hide him from the interrogation.

“So you don’t have a date and have zero reason not to ask Robin on one,” Nancy retorts and Steve doesn’t know how else to get out of this without; a) asking Robin out himself or b) Nancy doing it for him, neither are a viable option. It’s not like going on a date with Robin would be such a terrible thing, she’s great and Jane had taken to her almost immediately it’s just, Steve had almost become accustomed to being alone and could say he even _liked_ it. Besides, he’s not in the habit of leading anyone on, especially not someone he has to work with.

Steve’s eyes scan the area to search for an out. He could propose he needed the bathroom and shoot off in that direction, he could use the excuse he needs to get back to work but there are zero customers and all Robin and Jane are doing is goofing around putting together some samples. Then there's the last option; he could pretend he has plans with someone. “I actually have plans with… with Billy.”

“Hargrove? Are you insane?!” Nancy exclaims, the volume of her question only serving to catch the attention of that same Billy Hargrove they spoke of and he turned to them with a little smirk. Steve turns his head to catch his gaze and in a moment he regrets it, seeing Billy begin to saunter to his side a look of pure curiosity painted on his features.

“Talking about me, pretty boy?” Billy asks, a smugness behind his tone and Steve, tilting his head back, looks up to the glass dome of the atrium and mouths ‘god help me’. Nancy keeps pressing with judgement, of course, she knows all too well what had happened between the two of them at the Byers’. Steve’s eyes bore into the side of Billy’s head as he contemplates his next move, panic quickly setting in because he hasn’t really thought this through and he hadn’t expected Billy to seemingly play along. Billy suddenly turns his head to meet his gaze and Nancy, in front of them, clears her throat - both want Steve to elaborate but, stuck between a rock and a hard place, he doesn’t have an answer. If he admits it’s a lie, Nancy will continue to press him into asking Robin on a date and if he goes along with it, well, then he risks the public humiliation that comes with the rejection from Billy. 

So Steve does the only other thing he can think of, using not words but actions to continue his little lie and stun Billy into silence. So he presses his hands to Billy’s jaw and pulls him in to press a kiss against his lips. For a moment he feels resistance and Steve thinks suddenly how much of a bad idea this was because it’s not like Billy _knew_ and he didn’t exactly have the opportunity to _ask_ before this entire scenario came to life. There’s a second though where there’s a shift and Steve feels hands settling at his hips and there’s a tightness to it as Billy grips and pulls him a little closer. See, Steve had always been vocal about his sexuality, how he’d seen it as more fluid and Billy had come out just before graduation as a big old ‘fuck you’ to the team of kids who had forced him into this heterosexual box. Well, if he wanted to continue being the king of the school, he had to adhere to their rules. He respected his reputation, obviously, while wandering down those halls but free from it? With everyone going their separate ways, well Billy didn’t need to hide anything anymore. But Billy and Steve had never talked about it, never even really talked to each other since their fight and, well, that had been fine until _now_. 

Steve breaks away suddenly, jumping back from Billy as if he’s been shocked. It would make sense that Billy is like electricity, all heat and anger ready to lash out at anyone and it made even more sense that Steve would be on the receiving end of that. This, however, as much as it appeared that way, it was something completely different. Steve had gotten himself into this situation, sure and using Billy as a scapegoat was not his brightest idea but he hadn’t expected it to go this far and he certainly didn’t expect to almost enjoy it. Steve shakes the thought from his mind, his eyes landing on Nancy to see her closing her mouth. She says nothing, however, only storms off in the opposite direction and Steve is left dumbfounded with his last name echoing in his ears. It takes him a moment but the second he realises it’s Billy saying his name? Well that’s when he takes off running, leaving the cloth and cleaning bottle at his last table in his haste to scramble into the back of the parlour. 

 

_ ******** _

 

Hours later, when Steve’s shift has ended, he pulls up outside of the Palace Arcade with Dustin in tow. He’s changed out of that god forsaken uniform and feels more comfortably himself. His forehead is pressed against the steering wheel as he listens to Dustin drawl on about time travel, courtesy of Back To The Future, and; ‘how cool would it be if we could go back in time and stop the Demogorgons before they could terrorise anyone?’. Steve gets it, he does and while he’s sure there are some very plausible possibilities to come from movies, he somehow thinks that time travel isn’t one of them but Steve just doesn’t have the heart to tell Dustin that. It’s just that he has so many theories and Steve had heard all of them, at least twice, since Dustin had seen the movie the day it hit theatres but Steve knows there’s no flux capacitor in the world that could bring Barb or Bob back to life. 

“Okay, alright,” Steve announces, finally lifting up enough so he can lean across the console and open Dustin’s door for him. “We can talk about it on the way home because I’m not Marty McFly, I can’t get you this hour back if you spend it in here instead of the arcade with your friends.”

“Go,” Steve adds quickly as Dustin opens his mouth to protest. With a nod, Dustin climbs out of the car and mumbles incoherently as slams the door shut behind him. Steve would scold him but he _knows_ Dustin and he’s already listened to one of the younger boys tirades tonight, he doesn’t need another. Steve’s tolerance levels had dropped considerably in the last year or so, see Steve had almost submissively put up with a lot of bullshit. From Nancy, to school and his parents, to playing baby-sitter once and suddenly being expected to assume the role on a regular basis. It was a lot for a kid fresh out of high school with not many prospects ahead and Steve had found that, while he had a lot of care for everyone else, nobody really stopped to ask what he wanted, nobody cared to know how Steve Harrington was doing. 

Now Steve was a tough guy, emotional neglect wasn’t something foreign to him and he’d learned to embrace what he couldn’t control - this was just one of those things. That didn’t mean that on his worst days it didn’t become all too consuming, because it did. Often eating him alive from the inside out. Steve Harrington was lost, like a wanderer on a voyage through unfamiliar territory and that wasn’t helped by the looming reminder that he wasn’t good enough as every college rejection letter came through the door. It only further cemented the idea that he’d be stuck in Hawkins forever, no direction or career, just dead end jobs and that wasn’t the life he wanted. He sighed, slumping down in his seat and throwing his legs up against the dashboard, praying for a peace that seemed wholly out of reach.

It’s slumped down in the drivers seat that Billy finds Steve. Max had already made her way inside when Billy stepped out of the blue Camaro and pursed a cigarette between his dry lips. Leaning against the car he peers into the window of the car next to him, seeing the flurry of hair pressed against the seat and he smirks. Steve is in a varsity jacket, he notices, practically curled into it, despite it being the middle of the summer. Billy prefers the heat, doesn’t mind the sweat that trickles down the back of his neck when he exerts himself working on his car, trying to distract himself from the fact he’s still stuck in Hawkins. In a way, taking a job at the pool makes him feel more at home, sure it’s no California beach and there’s still that smell of cow shit in the air that is just made all the more putrid from the heat, but on quiet days he can swim and if he imagines hard enough he can trick himself into believing he’s back home. Steve, however, well he hates the heat and he hates the sweating, how no amount of Farrah Fawcet spray can save his hair from the sweaty matted mess it would come. Steve likes fall, likes the warm colours and how the falling leaves crunch under his boots. He likes to wear jeans and jackets and feel comfortable even as a light chill bites at his cheeks in the evening. He hates having to crank the air conditioning system in his car to feel any sort of relief like he is doing today, windows rolled to a complete close in an attempt to keep all the cool air in.

A rap of knuckles comes suddenly to that same window and it frightens Steve, causing him to jump and smack his calves against the centre console as they fall from the dashboard. A groan rips out of him as he reaches down to rub the back of his legs furiously, paying no mind to whoever had rudely interrupted the peace he had yet to find. When he eventually does turn, the last person he expects or wants to see standing there staring in through his window is Billy Hargrove. Steve notes the Metallica shirt he’s wearing, with the sleeves cut down too far so that his sides are bared, and the too short shorts covering none of his legs. Billy stands with a hand resting against the top of Steve’s car and an unbridled confidence oozing out of him, almost as potent as the smoke billowing from his lips, fanning out over the pane of glass. Steve sighs, pulling his legs over the console to rest them under the wheel where they belonged and waited for the smoke to dissipate before rolling down the window.

“What do you want, Hargrove?” Steve asks, exasperated because lord knows he won’t find any peace talking to the guy who rearranged his face almost a year ago. He tried to tell himself he was over that, he truly did but deep down he supposed he was still just a little bitter about it.

“Wanna tell me what that was all about earlier? At the mall?” Billy asks and there’s a flash of something on his features, like he’s a deer in headlights as he recounts the kiss they’d shared. It surprises Steve a little, how Billy's tone is soft and curious and not laced with anger like he's so used to.

“No,” Steve states simply, moving to roll the window up again. It’s been a long enough day, he thinks and the last thing he wants to do is re-hash the whole encounter but Billy’s hand is quick to come down against the window as if he’s trying to push it down and Steve stops rolling, admitting defeat.

“No?” Billy asks, a light chuckle pouring out of him with ease. Steve can’t remember ever hearing Billy laugh where it didn’t come with flying fists or some cutting remark.

“Do you not understand the word?” Steve asks, quickly taking the following silence that even if Billy did understand the word he’s not about to give this up. “Look, I just needed to throw Nancy off. If she thinks I’m dating someone else then she won’t push me to date someone I barely know.”

“First of all, why does she have such a baring on your love life?” Billy asks with a smirk, the kind that’s mocking and it taunts Steve irritating him almost immediately. Well, it was a little weird that his ex-girlfriend was the one trying to have any kind of say in his future relationships.

“She doesn’t, she likes to think that she does and I needed a way to get her to stop. You just happened to be the only person close by that I knew, okay? It’s not a big deal,” Steve explains, his tone rushed and exaggerated, like he’s doing everything he can to convince himself that it's 'not a big deal' as well as Billy. For a moment Steve thinks it works because Billy doesn’t say anything, he just nods as he finishes off the final lengths of his cigarette, dropping it to the ground then to crush the embers under his sneaker. Billy leans down, an arm hanging over the half open window and all too close that Steve can smell the cigarette still lingering on his slightly parted lips, mixed with the cologne staining his neck.

“So why don’t we pretend? To date, I mean,” Billy suggests suddenly, so self-assured like he’s actually doing Steve a favour and Steve hates that for a split second he considers it. He comes to his senses quickly because Billy never does anything without some other ulterior motive that benefits him.

“Are you out of your damn mind!?” Steve exclaims, his hand quick to the window roller once again, poised to push it the rest of the way whether Billy is hanging in his window or not.

“You tell me, Harrington. You’re the one that kissed me, I’m just trying to help you keep up the charade?” Billy adds and though he has a point, Steve refuses to admit that the other is right. Doesn't want to give him the satisfaction. 

“No.” Comes the quick, firm reply and Steve starts to roll the window again but Billy's hand is tight against the rim of it, holding it down stronger than Steve can turn the roller.

“No?” There it is again, Billy asking for clarification and it frustrates Steve, flares his nostrils as he bites back his rage because they both know that Billy is aware of the word no, he just seems to ignore any of it's connotations when it comes to Steve.

“Yes, Billy. N-O, no. What’s so hard to understand?” Steve is exasperated as he turns the roller with both hands, putting every ounce of energy into getting out of this conversation and Steve isn't sure why he thinks that a window between them would ever be enough to stop Billy Hargrove when he had his mind set on something.

“So which is it, Harrington? That a yes or no?” Billy asks with a drawl of sarcasm, that cocky surety that Steve will say yes is painted all over his features and Steve just can't wait to burst that bubble, to bring Billy down a peg or two. To be the only person to kiss him and reject him in the space of a few hours.

“It’s a ‘this is never going to happen’.” Steve replies, spacing out the words so that each one registers with Billy and he tops it off with a smile. It's clear that Billy doesn't believe it for a second, not with the way he laughs at the response but he backs up regardless, allowing Steve to roll the window the rest of the way. He keeps trying to turn the roller even as the window is shut tight, like any tiny crack would let Billy back in and would resume the awkwardness of the conversation. As far as opportunities go, Steve can't help but think this is one of the poorer options. It isn't too good to pass up because Steve can't imagine ever being around Billy long enough to consider him a friend let alone pretending to be his _boyfriend_. They were like magnets, they were always so close but never together with every encounter becoming more of a reason for Steve to repel the force that tried so hard to join them. He supposed, in a way, he couldn't really turn Billy down if he didn't want Nancy to catch him in a lie but Steve was scared of what would happen if he stopped repelling. What if he actually took Billy up on his offer, even for just a little while, what if he actually started to like him?


	2. what changed your mind, princess?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Steve doesn’t have a second to wipe the chlorine from his eyes before they’re adjusting to the body in front of him, the body that belongs to Billy who is in the perfect position to shield the sun from his eyes and have it cast behind his head like a halo. Steve almost chuckles at the irony.

Another week slips by and as it does, Steve feels more opportunities fall from his grasp. The weekend presents a chance for Steve to reflect, to relax or maybe apply for more colleges. Sure he’s missed the cut off for a lot of places but there’s a possibility he can get on a waitlist or even become a consideration for the following year. It’s not that he’s unintelligent it’s more that he doesn’t test well, like everything he didn’t study is everything they put on the test and it’s frustrating on a cosmic level. He supposes if he wasn’t busy fighting ethereal monsters for most of the fall, he may have had the time to cram in all of the information he was missing when it came to finals. All Steve wants is a glimmer of hope, a chance to get out. He just wants to stop feeling like he’s suffocating; like the hands of a demogorgon are wrapped around his neck, keeping him grounded to Hawkins with no sign of relief.

Somehow Billy had managed to get it all figured out. While his father wanted him to go down the route of military school and eventually end up fighting for the country, it was the last thing that Billy had wanted. He played along, of course, saving face for the sake of, well, saving his face. Billy looked at all the pamphlets, studied them until he could recite them from memory so it would seem convincing when he assured his dad he’d applied. Even when he hadn’t. Billy’s desire to flee Hawkins was strong and unlike most other things in his life, it was the only constant thing he could rely on. Unbeknownst to anyone, he’d applied to UCLA and, due to a secret harboured intelligence he never dared to share with anyone else, he had gotten in. The only downside? Billy had until the beginning of the first semester to come up with the funds for tuition or he’d have to defer entry for a year, something he’d already come to terms with. While his high GPA had allowed for a small grant to pay for tuition, the rest had to come out of pocket and he just didn’t have that kind of money right now and he sure as hell wasn’t going to get it from his dad.

Thinking about it, Billy and Steve were almost polar opposites, two extreme ends of a spectrum that neither of them truly understood. Though there was some sort of a pull there, something that constantly brought the two of them together, despite both of them working so hard to repel each other. Even Nancy being so nosy had seemed to put them on a collision course with one another, it was starting to seem almost like fate even if Billy had been mostly kidding about the proposal. Besides, they both had something to gain from the arrangement; Steve could say he was dating Billy to ward off Nancy and her endless desire to meddle in his love life and Billy… Well, for Billy it would just be a little fun for the summer, something to spice things up in a boring town. Maybe he wouldn’t admit it but he could use the rich boy to his advantage, find a way to thwart his fortune to get out of Hawkins and to UCLA earlier than he’d thought possible. Maybe Billy’s motives were less sincere than he’d made them out to be, even a touch sinister, but helping Steve Harrington wasn’t something at the top of his list. The thing was, Billy lived in a world where nobody ever factored him in, not as a first, second, third or even fourth thought - that’s why Billy only ever looked out for himself.

That was, of course, with the exception of work. Picking up shifts as a lifeguard he supposed, had been in a vain attempt to spend the summer parading around with his shirt off and wearing too tight shorts. Mostly it was to get out of the house, away from his dad and to pool as much money as possible to get the hell out of Hawkins, Indiana. However, something strange happened the second he donned that whistle and climbed the steps to his high perch. Billy, for once, felt like the authority, like this was his domain and everyone below had to listen to him because he was king. He liked that thought, he liked that instead of him having to listen, everyone had to listen to him. Maybe Billy took it a little too seriously, with eyes like a hawk, he caught every misdemeanour of every kid around or in the pool. He’d lost count of the amount of kids he’d threatened to ban for running the outskirts, or pushing other unexpectant kids into the water.

Same couldn’t be said for Steve, who hated his uniform, hated his job and despite having some authority over the youngers who worked with him, hated that nobody ever listened to him. Maybe all he needed was a whistle, who knows, but Steve relished in not having to step foot into Starcourt Mall dressed like a sailor from a bad porn movie. It was summer, a time Steve had always been so used to having for himself. For parties he was rarely invited to anymore, for friends that he didn’t particularly have anymore, for himself to do literally nothing but spend his parents money and lounge by the pool. Since graduation, most of that time had been taken up scooping ice cream for indecisive, snotty nosed kids that never seemed to learn any manners. That’s why Steve savours every rare Saturday off, seeing every off shift as an opportunity to spend the day in bed or by the pool doing absolutely nothing. That’s what brings him to the public pool two weekends before July 4th. 

*******************

In hindsight, it wasn’t really his idea to go to the public pool. Steve would much rather have stayed by his families pool in the backyard but alas. Nancy had been the one to suggest it, never one to break the tradition they’d kept up every summer - even if the friends they’d attended with had since moved on to other groups and activities. It seemed like Nancy was so desperate to keep the balance she’d shaken up herself by breaking up with him in the fall and Steve didn’t really have anyone else to hang out with, other than Dustin, so he wasn’t in a place to say no. It wasn’t just the two of them, of course, because Nancy didn’t go anywhere without Jonathan, who didn’t go anywhere without Will. So Nancy had of course just had to invite Mike. Steve considered inviting Dustin, so the rest of the party could be involved too but Steve, as much as he adored having a pseudo little brother, wanted just one day free of the kid.

What Steve hadn’t realised before this day however, was that Billy Hargrove, who had propositioned him a little over a week earlier, was a lifeguard at the same pool he was visiting. Not until Billy sauntered out of the dressing room, skin slick with oil to help him reach that perfect California tan that Hawkins had forced him to lose. He looked like he owned the place because in Billy’s mind he did. From the get go, Billy’s mind was on the job. He overlooked the girls that continued to ogle him as he passed, he didn’t even notice pretty boy Harrington at the other side of the pool shrouded by a parasol and hiding beneath shades. The same Harrington who happened to be ogling Billy also, surprised and perhaps a little self-conscious seeing his physique in those little red swim shorts. Maybe it’s the confidence, or the way Billy’s skin practically glistens under the sun but something about it stirs something in his stomach and shoots right down into his own shorts. Steve swallows thickly.

“So, how did the date with Billy go?” Nancy asks, pulling his eyes away and he’s grateful for the distraction, even if it does catch him completely off guard.

“Huh?”

“See, I knew you were lying, Steve. You can’t lie to me,” Nancy replies, tone stern and earnest. Steve knows she’s right because Nancy always had a way of pulling the truth out of him even if he didn’t want to give it. He had loved her so deeply that honesty was all he knew how to give. Maybe he was too honest, maybe thats why they fell apart. It hurt to think about.

“I’m not lying, I just don’t know why you care,” He announced with a shrug, pulling the shirt up over his shoulders to throw down onto the lounge chair.

“That’s not fair-“

“Is it not? You have everything put together, Nancy. What’s not fair is that you can’t trust that I’m telling you the truth but either way, my love life is none of your business,” Steve announces and it does hurt to lie, even if he has no reason to be honest with her anymore, to keep playing the charade even if he was adamant he’d never take Billy up on his offer. 

“Steve,” Nancy utters but Steve waves her off as he turns to walk to the edge of the pool, feet hanging off the edge with toes dipping into the water raised high against the side. He’s ready to jump, closes his eyes and thinks of it as a cliff and how much he’d like to fly. All while Nancy calls his name, getting louder as she moves closer to him. 

Steve dives in at the deep end, letting the water surround him and muffle Nancy’s calls of his name. There was a time he loved the way she said his name, the way it rolled off of her tongue, now it made him sick. Now it felt tainted, sordid even. From across the pool, atop the stoop, Billy hears the calls of a familiar name. He tips his sunglasses to peer over to the sound and sees Nancy standing, hands on her hips, staring down into the water as she calls Steve’s name. When he doesn’t resurface, she stalks back to her chair to bathe in the shade and Billy scoffs. He never liked Nancy, her sinewy frame left little to be desired anyway but for the most part, he just hated cheats. Not that he was a saint by any means but Billy never let himself be in a relationship to break someone’s heart by straying with another person. 

Billy descends from his throne with pride, as if every step down is a reminder for everyone that this is where he belongs. He’s not interested in intimidating patrons right now as his eyes catch the long line of Steve’s body in the water. He watches him, the way he swims beneath the surface and calculates the next direction as he pads his way around the edges, like a lion stalking his pray. Ever waiting, moving in slow deliberate strides. As Steve draws close to the edge, Billy knows he’ll need to come up for air and he crouches, still with sunglasses tipped and a smirk across his features. He doesn’t say anything as Steve comes out of the water, hands pushing through his hair to flatten it back. Steve doesn’t have a second to wipe the chlorine from his eyes before they’re adjusting to the body in front of him, the body that belongs to Billy who is in the perfect position to shield the sun from his eyes and have it cast behind his head like a halo. Steve almost chuckles at the irony.

“Harrington,” Billy utters, with somewhat of a seductive twang, his tongue poking out the side of his mouth. Steve doesn’t need to look back to know that Nancy is glaring at the two of them, suspicious. Steve licks over his lips, daring his eyes not to follow the every line and curve of Billy’s body as he sits waiting for a response.

“Let’s do this,” Steve says tentatively and really, he should have known better in the first place to tell Nancy he was dating Billy but now that it’s out there, he may as well run with it. It’s not his best idea but some would say Steve was never one for good ideas anyway. Billy has an eyebrow raised in confusion, head tilted to the side and Steve swears he can see the cogs turning in his brain as he attempts to figure out what the hell Steve is talking about. “Let’s pretend.”

“What changed your mind, princess?” Billy asks curiously, lifting his head to wave over at Nancy from across the pool. Steve thinks then that Billy already knows the answer to that and so Steve doesn’t answer. Billy’s position changes, legs falling into the water with one at either side of Steve’s torso. He supposes it wouldn’t be such a bad thing to make it official by proving something to Nancy. 

“What are you-,” Steve starts but strong calloused hands find their way to his jaw and force him up out of the water just enough to meet Billy halfway and Billy bumps his nose against Steve’s, urging him to tilt his head back a little and he does. Just enough for their lips to meet in a chaste kiss. Steve can only imagine what people must think but Billy’s lips are too plump, too soft with lip balm, against his own for him to care. Sometimes an opportunity presents itself that is just too good to pass up and as Billy pulls back to call him pretty boy, Steve thinks that this might be one of those moments.

 

*******************

 

“We need some rules,” Steve announces suddenly, after licking his spoon free of whipped cream. Billy groans in disdain, and hides his liking for the movement of Steve's tongue over the silver by rolling his head back, slumping in his seat dramatically. It's five days since the pair agreed to date one another for pretend and, because of work and a lack of ways to contact one another, they haven't really discussed anything regarding the arrangement. Billy had simply turned up one day, knowing Steve was close to finishing his shift because he was the ride for Max's new best friend. He figured it was the perfect time to catch him, let Max and El' run wild in the mall while the two of them finally talk. Neither of them expected that to turn into their first fake first date, situated just outside of Scoops Ahoy! over a shared hot fudge sundae.

"You really know how to suck the fun out something, don't you Harrington?" Billy retorts, a hypothetical question that bares no answer really. Steve shakes him off and Billy kind of misses the way that Steve would bite back, sparring a war of who can be more sarcastic which Billy, of course, would inevitably win. It's a little unsettling, the lack of fight and Billy chews at his lower lip for a moment. "Okay. What rules did you have in mind, princess?"

"Kissing is out."

"You have got to be kidding me," Billy laughs, a low rumble right from his gut. Steve isn't sure he's ever heard Billy laugh, wasn't even sure the other was capable of such a thing. Was it possible for someone so angry all the time to have bouts of happiness? Shaking his head, Billy presses his spoon into the ice cream again, taking a small scoop. He mouths over it, almost too seductively for Steve's liking. Billy only smirks, smacking his lips together to taste the sticky sweet chocolate that had coated there. "How are we supposed to convince people we're dating if I can't kiss you? What is this, the 1800's?"

Steve thinks for a moment but Billy is right, Nancy won't believe a word if they're just hanging out. If they're not doing things in public that couples typically do. "Fine, but no tongue. And only when necessary, I don't need you doing shit to try and mess with me."

"So you're saying it messes with you? When I kiss you?" 

Steve only huffs, ignoring the question because if there's one think he's learned it's that he can't win in a fight against Billy Hargrove. The man who has a response for everything. Billy likes to win, clearly, likes to have the upper had and Steve doesn't need to spat with him for him to feel like he has it. He can practically hear how smug he is, feel it in his bones with the way he smirks as he runs his tongue along his teeth. Billy Hargrove definitely does not get to him and he proves it in a quick change of the subject;  "We should have a backstory."

"A backstory?"

"Yeah, like a history. Otherwise it's too suspicious that we're suddenly hanging out - everyone thinks we hate each other," Steve suggests, waving his spoon at the other. Nancy was already skeptical enough and all it would take was one of them slipping up on the 'facts' to blow this whole thing out of the water.

"How much have you thought about this, Harrington?" Billy asks with a genuine curiosity. The answer? Too much. It was something that had wracked Steve's brain from the second they'd kissed at the pool, knowing full well that people would have questions. Nancy in particular, the kids. Knowing that everyone knew how Billy had rearranged his face in a colorful array of bruises made it hard for them to believe that Steve would ever forgive him, let alone be in a relationship with him. It was even worse, Steve thought, that it was so hard to believe himself.

"We could say we've been dating since before graduation, that we kept it secret. Nobody's business right? We made amends and... and we found some common ground."

"Yeah, like what?"

"Like music, movies? I don't know, our shared love of alcohol," Steve suggests, throwing his hands up in the air. He's unsure why he is the one coming up with all of the ideas when this had been Billy's idea to pretend in the first place. He seems disinterested and Steve's faith in Billy having genuine intentions about this dwindles from little to none at all.

"Okay that's fair. New rule, if we're going to convince people then you need to come to parties with me," Billy starts before spooning another mouthful of chocolate covered ice cream into his mouth. "And I have to be able to touch you, put my hand around your waist and shit."

"Fine but only above the waist and when I want to leave, we leave," Steve retorts because he has no interest for those parties anymore. Has no interest in hearing Tommy make fun of his Scoops Ahoy! uniform, or how the little rich boy is going nowhere. He knows it enough in himself that scathing reminders seem redundant. "If I have to go to parties, you have to come to family dinners. The ones you bring Max to, you know? And you have to stay for them."

"That'll go over great, considering what happened the last time I was at the Byers'," Billy utters, he thinks he says it quieter than he does but Steve hears every word. He recalls that night, of waking up in the back of the Camaro bloody and bruised, Max at the wheel. He remembers the fear and the pain, the lack of sleep for weeks after. Billy notices the way Steve retreats in on himself and nudges his foot with his own under the table. "Deal."

"Deal."

Sealed with a shake of their hands, the two boys settle into a discussion about literally anything else until the girls find them again. It's only after Steve has dropped El' home and he's driving alone in his car, through the darkened suburbs to his home, that Steve is hit with a wave of anxiety that knows no bounds. It's just that, Billy doesn't seem to do anything without some kind of malicious intent behind it and though Steve doesn't know for sure Billy's motives, the lack of interest he displayed is more than enough to make Steve apprehensive that there is one. Steve doesn't want to be taken advantage of, even if he technically took advantage of Billy first. The thing is, Steve never wanted this to happen and, of course, he regrets getting caught up in the lie, one that could very easily bite him in the ass later on. But despite his better judgement, after sleeping on it a few nights, he decides to continue on with the plan. 

For the first week it's calm, Billy meets him as he finishes work and they discuss the arrangement some more. Billy even walks Steve to his car, not that he needs to be chaperoned, and it's easy. They talk, actually converse with one another too about Hawkins, movies and it's strange that they seem to be getting along. Billy assures him it's just in case one of the kids see and feeds it back to Nancy because Steve knows they will but Steve starts to have a little more faith in Billy again because for a while he's actually genuinely trying. 

*******************

On the night before July 4th, Steve leaves work to find Billy perched against the hood of his car and lit cigarette sits between two pursed lips. The air is thick, humid and Billy looks dressed for it, just a pair of shorts and an open shirt. Steve notices a bead of sweat roll down the line of Billy's torso as he steps closer and feels his own sweat begin to soak the hairs at the back of his neck, sticking them to the skin. 

"What are you doing here? You weren't supposed to meet me tonight," Steve announces, moving to lean against his car right alongside Billy. He doesn't answer, too pre-occupied puffing at his cigarette, holding it between his thumb and index finger. Inhaling deeply, Billy sucks in as much nicotine as he can before offering the cigarette to Steve, who, surprised by the gesture, takes it for a drag.

"Remember the rule about parties? Tommy is hosting one tonight, celebrating July fourth."

"But July fourth is tomorrow, he knows that right?" Steve asks, uttering 'fucking idiot' under his breath. Billy hears it though and he laughs, quick to steal the cigarette back as if to muffle the sound of any joy that was elicited from him. Steve thinks that he kind of prefers Billy when it's laughter coming out of his mouth over the snide remarks he'd become so used to.

"You're right, sure but he also knows that everyone will be at the carnival tomorrow. For fireworks," Billy replies as a soft reminder, he doesn't ask if the pair on planning on going together. Besides, it's the day before and Billy assumes Steve already has plans to go with Nancy, the annoying kid with the curly hair that he can never remember the name of or the weird kid he works with, El'.

"Do we have to? I just got out of work dude, I'm exhausted I'd definitely need a show-"

"Nancy will be there," Billy smirks, cutting Steve off mid-sentence. Steve knows he should go, it's a little weird if Billy shows up without him and at least if Steve's there, he can keep Billy's flirting in check. Make sure he's doing all the right things to keep up the lie, rather than the wrong ones. Billy stands then, stubbing out the cigarette under his foot. "It's better if we show up together so, I guess I'll follow you back. You can do what you need to and then we'll take the Camaro, good?"

"Yeah," Steve utters, despite the feeling of regret already seeping into his bones. It feels like there's every reason to hold him back, to not go to the party, to not have Billy in his home but still he moves around to the drivers side of his car and opens the door with a nod. "Good."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i'm back! i know it's been a long time and i know a lot of people were interested in this when i first brought it out, so i'm sorry it took me so long. i had to work on my mental health for a while after a number of awful things happened but i finally feel myself again. thank you for supporting all my works so far, i hope you like this chapter and the ones to come.

**Author's Note:**

> i watched to all the boys i've loved before and got inspired. here's a little au for you, based around the time of s3.


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